Contract No. G-040-080 “Bakken Production Optimization Program - 2.0”

Some of the activities that would be considered under BPOP 2.0 include Rich-Gas EOR; Refrac Optimization; Produced Fluid Characterization; Fugitive Emissions; Hydrocarbon Sampling; Reser

Contract No G-040-080

“Bakken Production Optimization Program - 2.0”

Submitted by: Energy & Environmental Research Center

Principal Investigator: John A Harju

PARTICIPANTS

North Dakota Industrial Commission/OGRC Funding $ 6,000,000 (cash)

Project Schedule – 3 years Project Deliverables:

Contract Date – December 14, 2016 Quarterly Report: January 15, 2017 

Start Date – November 1, 2016 Quarterly Report: April 15, 2017 

Final Report: November 1, 2019 Quarterly Report: July 15, 2017 

Annual Report: October 15, 2017  Quarterly Report: January 15, 2018  Quarterly Report: April 15, 2018 Quarterly Report: July 15, 2018 Annual Report: October 15, 2018 Quarterly Report: January 15, 2019 Quarterly Report: April 15, 2019 Quarterly Report: July 15, 2019 Final Report: November 1, 2019

OBJECTIVE/STATEMENT OF WORK:

The EERC proposes a 3-year extension of the existing and highly successful Bakken Production Optimization Program (BPOP) to continue addressing emerging threats and issues to petroleum production in North Dakota The goal of the project is to employ a “system of systems” approach to enhance overall production efficiency, recognizing that improved coordination among various design factors (reservoir management, well design, surface processing, gas management, waste management) can lead to significant improvements in resource recovery efficiency.

Some of the activities that would be considered under BPOP 2.0 include Rich-Gas EOR; Refrac Optimization; Produced Fluid Characterization; Fugitive Emissions; Hydrocarbon Sampling; Reservoir Performance Modeling; Water Injection Reservoir Assessments; Facility Process Modeling; Aromatic/Aliphatic Study; Site Equipment Survey; Regulatory Review; Assessment of Stormwater Management Practices; Saltwater Disposal Capacity Modeling; and High-Value Minerals in Produced Fluids

Expected results include increased well productivity and economic output of North Dakota’s oil and gas resources, decreased environmental impacts of wellsite operations, and reduced demand for infrastructure construction and maintenance Specific results will include improved resource recovery efficiency, reduced land use impacts, increased royalties and tax revenue from harnessed associated gas and natural gas liquid streams, and increased revenue from added product streams captured earlier in the well life cycle.

STATUS

Contract has been executed

January 13, 2017 - Quarterly Report received - a copy is posted on the website It states in part:

• Contract was signed on December 13, 2016 This permitted task engagement in January.

• Seven tasks were identified: Enhanced Oil Recovery; Refracturing Optimization; Produced Fluid Characterization; Reservoir Performance Modeling; Water Injection Reservoir Assessment; Facility Process Optimization; Aromatic/Aliphatic Study

• A dynamic modeling package was purchased to facilitate the work under the Facility Process Optimization Task.

• EERC staff worked with a potential new industry program partner in December to determine a possible collaboration and fit within BPOP 2.0 This potential partner has strong interest in rich gas and/or ethane-based enhanced oil recovery (EOR) This partner also wishes to begin injection by June, necessitating a rapid integration with BPOP.

April 13, 2017 - Quarterly Report Received - a copy is posted on the website It states in part:

Enhanced Oil Recovery Task

• Obtained rock samples from the Lower and Upper Shales and the Middle Bakken laminatedzones from three wells located in thermally immature, moderate maturity, and mature areas.These rock cores were extracted with both CO2 and ethane at 5000 psi for 24 hours The EERCthen analyzed the extracts to determine the relative abilities of CO2 and ethane to recovery both light and heavy hydrocarbons from the Shales and Middle Bakken core samples

• Began experiments to compare the quantity of crude oil and the ability to mobilize both lightand heavy hydrocarbons using ethane vs CO2 in the “miscible” phase formed at reservoirconditions

• Completed preliminary modeling activities to evaluate compression requirements to utilizewellhead gas as the stimulation fluid for the Liberty Resources enhanced oil recovery (EOR)demonstration The EERC is now evaluating gas temperature, pressure, and composition toachieve a range of desired well bottomhole pressures

• Liberty Resources provided the EERC with extensive data sets related to reservoircharacterization, reservoir production, surface operations, and site infrastructure

• Liberty Resources–EERC meetings to collaborate on the rich gas EOR pilot:

o March 23 at the Stomping Horse facility Toured the facility and developed an intimateunderstanding of the site’s operational and infrastructure components

o March 21 in Bismarck with personnel from the North Dakota Department of MineralResources (Oil & Gas Division) Discussed the processes for injection well permitting andunitization as they relate to the planned rich gas EOR pilot

o March 20–21 in Denver Met with Liberty’s geoscience team to obtain relevant sitecharacterization data in support of developing a static geomodel of the Stomping Horsearea

o March 16 at the Stomping Horse facility Collected baseline oil and water samples tosupport planned laboratory studies in support of the rich gas EOR pilot testing

o February 27–28 in Grand Forks Discussed potential rich gas EOR pilot testing at theStomping Horse location in Williams County

Produced Fluid Characterization Task

• Coordinated with EERC’s BPOP 2.0 program leads to identify key information and data needs tosupport ongoing and planned research efforts

• Created GIS-based maps using publicly available data to identify and evaluate trends in chemicaland physical characteristics occurring within the Williston Basin Bakken Formation Thisinformation was used to identify existing data gaps and prioritize data needs and sample

collection activities to help create a robust database of pertinent information to supportindustry and BPOP program research efforts.

• Created a fact sheet on BPOP 2.0 Bakken fluids characterization activities and data/samplecollection needs This fact sheet will be utilized to solicit cooperative efforts with industrypartners The fact sheet will also be useful in outreach efforts to disseminate informationcollected by BPOP 2.0 to industry and to the public

• Developed partnerships with key industry partners to obtain access to confidentialcharacterization data and for fluids sample collection access and support

• Coordinated data collection and sample acquisitions among various program partners, theninitiated analysis of collected fluids

• EERC staff met with Liberty Resources staff to collect fluid samples from several Stomping Horseunit wells The samples will be analyzed at the EERC to better understand the composition andorigin of the fluids produced from Liberty’s Stomping Horse development unit

Reservoir Performance Modeling Task

• Reviewed published literature on the subject of optimal completion techniques for the Bakken

• Completed a significant expansion of the reservoir performance database developed during theBPOP 1.0 preliminary study The database has been expanded to 400 wells, compared to the

200 wells used in the preliminary study The enlarged well number allows for better definition ofareas of interest such as a specific field or geologically defined area Additional geologic andwell information as well as completion operations have been added Cumulative productionindicators at specific times are also added for comparison

• Completed a decline curve analysis for the wells Production forecast updates made for thewells that were used in the preliminary study showed good agreement with the originalforecasts

Water Injection Reservoir Assessment Task

• Improved the current reservoir model for the Inyan Kara Formation with an updated geologicmodel with modified reservoir permeability and porosity values

o A total of 103 saltwater disposal (SWD) wells were considered in the study region andbuilt into the reservoir model

o Simulated a period spanning the years 1961 to 2020 (with history data to January 2016)

23 SWD wells were used in constructing the geologic model

o The first simulation case was performed after importing the field history injection ratedata of all of the SWD wells

o As would be expected, the history of wellhead pressure for the 23 modeled wells wasbetter matched than that of the other 80 SWD wells

• Compared the simulated and field history wellhead pressure data to improve the history match

of the reservoir model on a broad scale Where necessary, adjustments were made to thereservoir permeability surrounding wells located in a particular area This work is ongoing Uponcompleting the necessary adjustments, additional simulations will be performed, and historymatching will focus on refining the permeability values around each wellbore until anacceptable history match is achieved

Facility Process Optimization Task

• EERC staff traveled to Houston on January 24–27, 2017, to attend a training session hosted by

Virtual Materials Group The training focused on dynamic simulations using our recentlyacquired VMGSim™ modeling software being used to assess non-steady-state operations onfugitive emissions, gas injection for EOR, and crude oil quality.

• Installed dynamic modeling software purchased in December EERC staff then developed afacilities model and wellbore model for use in subsequent simulation tasks

• Conducted process modeling for wellsite production operations typical of those found in theBakken to analyze the impact of various operating parameters on fugitive emissions fromstorage tanks A paper on the modeling exercise and its results was posted to the EERC’s Website at www.undeerc.org/Bakken/pdfs/CLM-BPOP%20Process%20ModBrief%20R4- Mar17.pdf

Aromatic/Aliphatic Study Task

• Obtained crude oil samples from the Three Forks and Middle Bakken Formations from anoperator in northeast Williams County The operator also agreed to collect crude oil samples foraromatic/aliphatic analyses from the beginning of crude oil production into the decline curve fortwo wells being brought online in the next few months These samples will be used in an attempt

to determine the relative contribution of the Upper and Lower Shales to crude production.

• Completed and tested a quantitative analytical method to accurately measurearomatic/aliphatic concentrations in both rock and crude oil samples Also began analyses ofapproximately 40 rock extract samples

Environmental Support Task

• Attended a quarterly Environmental Peer Group meeting on February 15, 2017, in Watford City

in support of a vast array of environmental focal points being pursued by BPOP 1.0 membercompanies

• Provided content for an education day focused on activities of the North Dakota PetroleumCouncil’s Hydrocarbon Task Force The content will inform on North Dakota crude oil qualityissues and how hydrocarbon spills are remediated

Program Management and Development

• Obtained verbal commitments for BPOP 2.0 membership from Oasis and ConocoPhillips, joiningLiberty Resources and Marathon Oil as program partners

• Continuing membership dialogue with Continental Resources, XTO Energy, Hess Corporation,Statoil, PetroHunt, Newfield Exploration, WPX Energy, and Whiting Oil & Gas Additionally,membership opportunities will be sought in the coming quarter from strategically importantservice companies

• Soliciting potential kickoff dates for May in Houston, and soliciting potential hosting by amember company

• Provided testimony to the North Dakota House Energy and Natural Resources Committee onHB1257 (relating to approval requirements for unitization plans) in Bismarck, North Dakota, onFebruary 3, 2017 HB1257 was passed by the ND Legislature and signed into law by GovernorBurgum This bill lowers the threshold for unitization approval to 55%

• Attended the SPE Canada Unconventional Resources Conference in Calgary, Alberta, on

February 14–16, 2017 Participated in a full-day workshop entitled “Introduction to Re-

Fracturing Fundamentals.”

• Met with Rice University leaders regarding a newly developed memorandum of understanding(MOU) While there, EERC and Rice staff discussed potential collaboration on advanced

reservoir characterization technologies (nuclear magnetic resonance), produced watertreatment, and nanotechnology applications.

July 13, 2017 - Quarterly Report received - a copy is posted on the website It states in part:

Enhanced Oil Recovery Task

• Continued rock extraction experiments to compare the quantity of crude oil and the ability

to mobilize both light and heavy hydrocarbons using rich gas components vs CO2 in the

“miscible” phase formed at reservoir conditions

• Studies of minimum miscibility pressure (MMP) using oil samples from the Stomping Horse area were conducted Gases that were tested included ethane, methane, and propane and mixtures of those gases

• Evaluated compression options for rich gas injection operations All options identified at this time require the manufacturing of customized units, which require minimum 36-week lead times and substantial capital investment

• Liberty Resources provided the EERC with extensive data sets related to reservoir

characterization, reservoir production, surface operations, and site infrastructure

• A geologic model of the Stomping Horse area was developed

• A proposal was submitted to the U.S Department of Energy (DOE) for funding to support a rich gas enhanced oil recovery (EOR) pilot project that will be conducted in close

collaboration with Liberty Resources The proposal was approved for funding through the EERC’s Joint Cooperative Agreement with DOE at the end of June

• Liberty Resources–EERC meetings to collaborate on the rich gas EOR pilot:

– May 17 in Houston at BPOP 2.0 Kickoff Meeting Liberty provided an update on its efforts to identify compression options and discussed its plans for the rich gas EOR pilot.– May 21 in Denver EERC and Liberty personnel had a working session to discuss directionand scope of the modeling efforts

– June 7 in Grand Forks Discussed modeling efforts to support the planned rich gas EOR pilot Topics of discussion included progress to date on the development of the

Stomping Horse geologic model, next steps for preparation of that model for simulations, potential injection/production scenarios that will be simulated, and the time line for modeling activities

Produced Fluid Characterization Task

• Coordinated with BPOP program leads to identify key information and data needs tosupport ongoing and planned research efforts

• Developed partnerships with key industry partners to obtain access for fluid samplecollection

• Conducted sampling activities for both produced water and crude oil from 18 wells in thenorthern portion of the Williston Basin owned by Liberty Resources, Inc This activityrequired EERC staff travel to the Tioga area on April 26–27

• Initiated analytical activities, with results being used to support program objectives

Reservoir Performance Modeling Task

• Prepared and delivered a two-part presentation at BPOP 2.0 kickoff meeting coveringpreliminary results of decline curve analysis for the 400 well database and multivariateanalysis to identify production drivers for Bakken and Three Forks completions

• Based on comments from the BPOP 2.0 kickoff meeting, extracted data from the NDIC Website to estimate well spacing for each of the 400 wells at the time of their completion.Preliminary results indicate that long-term well performance is affected by well spacing andthe timing of when the well was drilled in its DSU (drill spacing unit).

• Currently compiling a draft of the topical report for this task

• EERC staff traveled to Golden, Colorado, on May 23–25, 2017, to attend an InternationalReservoir Technologies, Inc., informational meeting This was in direct support to thereservoir performance modeling task

Water Injection Reservoir Assessment Task

• Completed history-matching simulations for the 103 saltwater disposal (SWD) wellsincluded in the Inyan Kara reservoir model

• Incorporated field wellhead pressure (WHP) data into the model for each of 103 SWD wellsand used for comparison to the model-predicted WHP to perform the history matching.Adjustments were made to the reservoir permeability over the entire model area as well asthe localized areas surrounding individual SWD wells Of the 103 wells, 97 were successfullyhistory-matched

• Finalized Inyan Kara reservoir model simulation cases

• Planned four predictive simulation cases:

♦ One case will simulate continued injection of all the SWD wells in the modeledarea at the last recorded injection rates until the year 2050 to test the potentialinjection capacity of the Inyan Kara Formation

♦ Three cases will use the current operating wells (93 wells), with predictivesimulations based on the current injection rate, maximum allowable injection rate,and maximum allowable injection pressure, respectively

• Information on the maximum allowable injection rate and pressure for each well was compiled from the well files for each of the 103 SWD wells

Facility Process Optimization Task

• Conducted process modeling simulations to evaluate the effect of treater operations and atmospheric conditions on crude oil quality Preliminary results were summarized and shared with BPOP members, and work is ongoing to gather operational data to enable model validation

• Hosted a meeting of select North Dakota operators in Williston, North Dakota, to discussthe various design and operational factors influencing crude oil volatility The goal of themeeting was to discuss options and assess the need for a comprehensive process modelingand field validation effort geared toward improving Basin-wide compliance with crude oilvolatility specifications This activity required EERC staff to travel to Williston on May 9–10,2017

• Posted a paper summarizing EERC modeling activities assessing the impacts of processoperations on tank emissions to the EERC’s Web site at www.undeerc.org/Bakken/pdfs/CLM-BPOP%20Process%20ModBrief%20R4-Mar17.pdf

Aromatic/Aliphatic Study Task

• Obtained and analyzed crude oil samples for aromatic/aliphatic content from five sets of

co-located pairs of wells from Williams, Burke, and Divide Counties In each pair, one well producedfrom the Three Forks and one well produced from the Middle Bakken:

– For three of the wells, the Three Forks and Middle Bakken crude oils showed similar, butfairly high, total aromatic/aliphatic ratios (ca 0.25 to 0.35)

– For two of the wells, the Three Forks crude oils were also in the high 0.25 to 0.35 range,but the Middle Bakken crude oils had low ratios of only ca 0.10

– These results strongly indicate that all of the Three Forks crude oils and three of the fiveMiddle Bakken crude oils had significant contributions from adjacent shales (because oftheir relatively high ratios)

– In contrast, the two Middle Bakken crude oils with low aromatic/aliphatic ratios appear

to have little or no production from the adjacent shales

• Applied the newly developed analytical method for quantitating aromatic and aliphatichydrocarbon contents to 57 different samples (ranging from Three Forks to Lower, Middle, andUpper Bakken samples) obtained from nine wells Final data reduction is under way, andadditional core samples are in the process of being collected, extracted, and analyzed

• Performed initial attempts to remove diesel cutting fluids from drill cuttings in order to allowthe rock drill cuttings to be used for aromatic/aliphatic analyses Mild solvent extractions as well

as simple evaporation was used Unfortunately, these approaches were not successful inremoving the interferences from the diesel cutting fluids The operator of these wells haspromised a sample of the diesel cutting fluid, which will be used in an attempt to better “clean”the diesel fluid from drill cuttings and allow aromatic/aliphatic analyses to be performed

Environmental Support Task

• EERC staff collaborated with North Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC) members, North DakotaDepartment of Health (NDDH) staff, and representatives of the Northwest Landowner’sAssociation (NWLA) as plans were formulated to promote and execute a series of educationalevents focused on hydrocarbon spills and hydrocarbon spills remediation

– The first education day event is scheduled for July 17, 2017 This first event will focus onthe chemistry of produced liquid hydrocarbons, analytical methods employed tocharacterize produced liquid hydrocarbons, and an introduction to a risk-basedapproach to remediating hydrocarbon spills

– Subsequent education day meetings will cover:

♦ Livestock and crop considerations

♦ Types of water and uses—considerations in risk-based approach

♦ A comparison of current regulations across North Dakota and other states and thescience behind their employment

Program Management and Development

• EERC staff traveled to Houston on May 16–18, 2017, to lead a BPOP 2.0 kickoff meeting Themeeting was hosted at Oasis Petroleum offices EERC staff presented on several aspects ofanticipated and ongoing BPOP 2.0 activities to attending and prospective members Theprogram wishes to formally and publicly thank Oasis for its willingness to host this meeting.Copies of the presentations made during this meeting have been made available on theMembers-Only Web site

• New program members received during this reporting quarter include Petro-Hunt, HessCorporation, ConocoPhillips, and Oasis Petroleum They join existing members: NDIC, LibertyResources, and Marathon Oil.

• A proposal was submitted to DOE for funding to support a rich gas EOR pilot project that will beconducted in close collaboration with Liberty Resources The proposal was approved for fundingthrough the EERC’s Joint Cooperative Agreement with DOE at the end of June

• EERC staff traveled to Bismarck on May 20–22, 2017, to participate in the meeting betweenLiberty Resources and the NDIC’s Oil & Gas Division regarding permitting of a rich gas injectionwell for EOR purposes

• Several discussions were held with BPOP members (and potential members) to discuss thefeasibility of high-value material recovery from Bakken produced water Several members areinterested specifically in the recovery of lithium, which occurs at elevated concentrations inseveral produced water samples analyzed by the EERC

• A summary of BPOP oil and water decline curve analysis work was presented at the WillistonBasin Petroleum Conference in Regina, Saskatchewan, on May 4, 2017

• EERC staff traveled to Denver on June 12–15, 2017, to participate in the NDPC ExecutiveCommittee meeting

October 13, 2017 - Annual/Quarterly Report received - a copy of the report is posted on the website The

Annual report states in part:

ANNUAL REPORT

Enhanced Oil Recovery Task (Liberty Resources’ Stomping Horse Project)

Expansion of Enhanced Oil Recovery Effort with Significant DOE Funding

The U.S Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded $2,000,000, with $1,000,000 committed to date tosupport EERC efforts under the existing rich gas enhanced oil recovery (EOR) pilot project that will beconducted in close collaboration with Liberty Resources The goals of the work to be conducted usingthe DOE funds include the following:

• Determine the effectiveness of cyclic multiwell huff and puff (CMWHP) as aninjection/production scheme that can maintain conformance of the working fluid within thereservoir

• Determine the ability of various rich gas mixtures to mobilize oil in Bakken petroleum systemreservoir rocks and shales

• Determine changes in gas and fluid compositions over time in both the reservoir and surfaceinfrastructure environments, and assess how those changes affect reservoir and process facilityperformance

• Optimize future commercial-scale tight oil EOR design and operations via iterative modeling ofsurface infrastructure and reservoir performance using data generated by the field- andlaboratory-based activities

• Establish the effectiveness of selected monitoring techniques as a means of reservoirsurveillance and injection conformance monitoring in the Bakken petroleum system

Major Milestone for Liberty Resources EOR Pilot Operation

On September 21, 2017, Liberty Resources presented its application to NDIC to gain temporaryauthority to use Leon-Gohrick drill spacing unit (DSU) wells as injection wells for an EOR pilot

operation The application is under consideration by NDIC, and it is anticipated that a decision may berendered in late 2017 It is anticipated that the pilot test will be initiated no later than early to mid-2018.

Refracturing Optimization Task

Refracturing (Refrac) Optimization Study Recently Engaged

The EERC initiated a case study of the first well in Whiting Corporation’s Refrac Pilot Project in whichproduction performance was assessed The response of the well to the refrac operation seems to bepositive, with an increased oil production rate and contacting new additional reservoir volumefollowing the operation In parallel, the EERC began developing suggested guidelines for candidateselection in unconventional reservoirs

Produced Fluid Characterization Task

Year-Long Collection and Analysis of Samples from Across the Basin, Across All Producers

Throughout the year, the EERC has collected crude and produced water samples from numerous wellsacross the basin and across many producing companies Sampling will be repeated periodicallythroughout the first 12 to 18 months of production to provide a temporal aspect to well fluidcomposition The EERC also issued formal solicitations to key industry partners for available fluidcompositional data and access to future sample collection and analysis activities The result of thiseffort will be an unprecedented database of Williston Basin produced fluid composition and insights onvariation across geography, geology, and operational practices

Reservoir Performance Modeling Task

Novel Analysis of Bakken Petroleum System Reservoir Performance Completed

Technical work on the decline curve analysis for the 400-well database and multivariate analysis toidentify production drivers for the Bakken petroleum system has been completed A draft of the topicalreport for this task has been completed, and it is under an internal technical review The analysisindicates how specific drilling and completion practices may affect long- term oil production

Water Injection Reservoir Assessment Task

Significant Remaining Capacity Estimated for North Dakota’s Largest Water Injection Reservoir

The EERC injection simulations have led the EERC to predict that, with anticipated injection volumes,significant Inyan Kara Formation disposal capacity of approximately 4 to 5 billion barrels (5–6 times thecurrent cumulative water injected) will exist at the end of the year 2050 Pressure analyses also suggestthat a large portion (e.g., south half) of the simulated area will be capable of additional pressureincrease even after more than 30 years of future injection, although additional disposal wells would berequired in those areas Therefore, the total injection capacity of the simulated area should be largerthan the predicted capacity, as estimated by simulating only the existing wells The ability toeconomically access this additional capacity has not been addressed by this study

Facility Process Optimization Task

EERC Surface Facility Process Modeling Effort Engaged to Improve Operations Efficiency and Identify

Factors Influencing Crude Oil Vapor Pressure (volatility)

The EERC has completed an initial analysis of a large set of operational data and crude oil vaporpressure data to identify trends and factors influencing crude oil vapor pressure Results from thisanalysis were summarized and shared with the North Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC) TechnicalSolutions Group in Dickinson, North Dakota, on September 7, 2017 Summarized and presented anoverview of data analysis and modeling activities regarding surface facility design and operationsstrategies to achieve crude oil vapor pressure targets.

Aromatic/Aliphatic Study Task

EERC Developing New Indicators of Oil Source Rock

Work continues on developing an approach using aromatic/aliphatic ratios to identify the source rock

of crude oil produced in the Bakken petroleum system Promising results achieved to date may lead to

a new approach to identifying the source of the crude oil, regardless of the age of the sample or howthe sample was obtained This, in turn, may lead to greater certainty on estimates of oil in place in theBakken petroleum system

Environmental Support Task

EERC Leading Joint NDPC–North Dakota Department of Health (NDDH)–BPOP Educational Outreach

October 13, 2017 - The Quarterly Report states in part:

Enhanced Oil Recovery Task

• $1,000,000 of funding from the U.S Department of Energy (DOE) was set up (while anadditional $1,000,000 is anticipated) to support EERC efforts under the rich gas enhanced oilrecovery (EOR) pilot project that will be conducted in close collaboration with Liberty Resources.The goals of the work to be conducted using the DOE funds, which was initiated during the pastquarter, include the following:

– Determine the effectiveness of CMWHP as an injection/production scheme that canmaintain conformance of the working fluid within the reservoir

– Determine the ability of various rich gas mixtures to mobilize oil in Bakken petroleumsystem reservoir rocks and shales

– Determine the changes in gas and fluid compositions over time in both the reservoir

and surface infrastructure environments, and assess how those changes affectreservoir and process facility performance.

– Optimize future commercial-scale tight oil EOR design and operations through the use

of iterative modeling of surface infrastructure and reservoir performance using datagenerated by the field- and laboratory-based activities

– Establish the effectiveness of selected monitoring techniques as a means of reservoirsurveillance and injection conformance monitoring in the Bakken petroleum system

• Activities to accomplish the BPOP 2.0 goals for the pilot project stated above were initiated thisquarter Specific activities include the following:

– Laboratory-based examinations of rich gas interactions with reservoir fluids and tightrocks (including oil-rich shales) will be used to determine the ability of various rich gasmixtures to mobilize oil in the tight reservoir rocks and shales of the Bakken petroleumsystem During this quarter, minimum miscibility pressure (MMP) studies wereconducted using different mixtures of rich gas (ethane, methane, and propane) in oilsamples from Liberty Resources Stomping Horse complex in Williams County Initialextraction studies on rocks from the Stomping Horse area were also conducted

– Evaluations of the changes in gas and fluid compositions over time in both the tight oilreservoir and surface infrastructure environments will be conducted as well asexaminations of how those changes affect reservoir and process facility performance.Crude oil and produced water samples were collected from a newly completed andproducing well in the Stomping Horse complex to determine baseline compositions.These samples were collected September 7–18, 2017, during the first 2 weeks of wellproduction Sampling will be repeated periodically throughout the first 12 to 18months of production to provide a temporal aspect to well fluid

– Iterative modeling of surface infrastructure and reservoir performance will beconducted using the data generated by the various project activities to optimize futurecommercial- scale Bakken EOR design and operations A static geomodel of the Bakkenpetroleum system in the Stomping Horse area was used to create an upscaled model

of the specific drill spacing unit (DSU) that will be used for the pilot project The DSUmodel was the basis for history-matching modeling that was performed using dataprovided by Liberty Resources Simulation modeling of several potential injection andproduction scenarios was also conducted A model of the surface operations andinfrastructure of the Stomping Horse complex, including the County Line Gas Plant,was created using data provided by Liberty Resources

• On September 21, Liberty Resources presented its application before NDIC (Case No 26035) for

an order granting temporary authority to use numerous wells located in the DSU (referred to asthe “Leon-Gohrick DSU”), comprised of Sections 8 and 17, T.158N., R.95W., Williams County, asinjection wells for an EOR pilot operation The application is under consideration by NDIC, and it

is anticipated that a decision may be rendered in the next quarter It is anticipated that the pilottest will be initiated no later than early to mid-2018, pending approval from NDIC An exhibitpresented by Liberty Resources that contains detailed information about the plans for pilottesting is provided in Appendix C

Refracturing Optimization Task

• A literature survey is under way to learn more about past and current research and practices on